Improvement in baskets



H. H. 81]. K. STEVENS.

Baskets.

Patented March 3i, 1874.

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pg/ITJVESSES c. .a y.

Attorneys.

UNITED STATESQ PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY H. STEVENS AND JoEN x. STEVENS, on nAoINE, WISCONSIN.

IMPROVEMENT IN BASKETS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 149,264, dated March31, 1874; application filed August 13, 1873.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, H. H. STEVENS and J. K. STEVENS, of Racine, in thecounty of Racine and in the State of Visconsin, have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Baskets; and do hereby declare that thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings and to the letters of referencemarked thereon, making a part of this specification.

The nature of our invention consists in the construction and arrangementof a splint basket, as will be hereinafter more fully set forth.

In order to enable others skilled in the art to which our inventionappertains to make and use the same, we will now proceed to describe itsconstruction and operation, referring to the annexed drawing, in which-fFigure lis a side elevation of our basket. Fig. 2 is a perspective Viewof the bottoni; and Fig. 3, a section through the side of the same.

Our basket is made of a series of splints or standards, which runentirely around the bottom ofthe basket. In fact, they form the bottorn.On the inside and outside of the bottom are fastened hoops a a., and thebottom is curved upward within these hoops. The splints or standards aremade alternately long and short, the short standards A A extending onlyup to or near the center of the basket, while the long standards A Aextend up to the top of the basket. The open spaces occasioned by theshort standards A', only reaching up to or near the center of thebasket, are covered by the attachment of a broad band, B. This broadband is attached to the inside of the basket, and extends from the topdownward to or below the center of the basket, and is securely fastenedthrough the standards to two narrow hoops, b b, on the outside of thebasket. One of these hoops is parallel with the upper edge, and theother with the lower edge of the broad band B. All the hoops, standards,and broad band are thoroughly fastened through and through withclinch-nails.

This Inode of construction makes a basket perfectly tight and capable ofholdin g the finest seeds, grain, &c., and more strong and durable.

In the use of the wide band B no inside eenter or top hoops are used,Ina-king the basket perfectly smooth inside, and hence nothing to clogin discharging its contents, as is the case where inside hoops are used.The band also strengthens the basket where they are usually the weakestand .most apt to break from the center to the top of the basket.

In discharging the contents (any heavy coinmodity) over a wagon or theside of a bili, it' great care is not taken the standards are very aptto break, but by the use of this wide band this difficulty is entirelyobviated.

We are aware that baskets have been made of a number of strips orstandards all of the same length and with interior hoops at the top andcenter, and we do, therefore, not claim such as our invention.

Having thus fully described our invention, what we claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The within-described basket, consisting of the long strips A, shortstrips A', interior broad band B extending from the top down below thetop of strips A', and the exterior bands b b and bottom bands a a., allconstructed and arranged substantially as and for the purposes hereinset forth.

In testimony that we claim the foregoing we have hereunto set our handsthis 25th day of July, 1873.

HENRY H. STEVENS. JOHN K. STEVENS.

Titnesses SAML. RITCHIE, S. B. VAN BUSKIRK.

